A Return to Normality
by That One Random
Summary: Or, as close as a bunch of flying bird kids will ever get to anyway. Max/Fang, Iggy/Ella, Post-MR3.
1. Chapter 1

They hadn't planned on staying at Dr. Martinez's after the whole Itex thing but frankly, when someone offers you a place to stay with actual beds, free food and the chance to maybe chill for a little bit without worrying about saving the world, one tends to take that person up on that offer.

Almost immediately they had settled into a routine, Iggy helping cook of a morning, Max waking everyone up with her usual tact and grace, Fang slipping into the kitchen all ninja style and scaring everyone senseless. Gazzy would make everyone sorely regret having beans on toast, Angel would probably make Max melt into a puddle of goo at something and, for once, Nudge could actually talk to someone normal non-stop that actually understood what the hell she was on about.

Still, something about it didn't sit right with Max. Even after a week at her mom's, she couldn't switch off from her fight mode. Tossing and turning in her bed, sleep just wouldn't come and when it did it was in fitful bouts of nightmares that she couldn't remember. She supposed she was lucky that it was just nightmares.

She had managed to keep it under wraps for the first week but others were noticing it too now. She wasn't at the top of her game. Something had been thrown at her head and instead of catching it or moving aside, she jumped in mild surprise when the cushion smacked into her head. Fang, damn him and his ninja sneaking, could sneak up on her easier than ever (as if her heartrate didn't skyrocket enough around him). If it was anyone else, she'd have turned around and busted someone's nose for making her that jumpy. One morning she had stumbled into the kitchen and walked straight into the table without realising it. Thankfully, Ella and Fang were the only ones up and Fang just tilted his head in a way that-Well, his eyes were-

Hell.

"You're not sleeping properly," he said to her later on the same day, long after everyone except for him and Ella had retreated to their rooms. She was in the kitchen, helping Dr Martinez with the dishes while Fang was stood leaning against a wall. Max, who had been sitting down, raised an eyebrow at that.

"I've run on less and you know it."

"You don't need to run on less." He said in that quiet way of his. "Far as I can see, we won. Don't need to be on the run anymore." His head tilted like it had that morning when she had ran into the table, eyes intense and concerned and Max had to avert her eyes to the TV. He didn't say anything though, letting her speak on her own terms. Brat had been paying attention.

"I can't switch off," Max said quietly after a time, keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the TV. "I know the fights over. I know we won. I just...I'm expecting someone to attack us at any moment." She left out the part about the nightmares about the School, about what could've gone wrong when they were taking down Itex because, _honestly._ What was she, five?

She felt a dip in the couch as he sat down next to her silently, knee knocking hers as he leaned forward so he was at least in her peripheral vision. For half a second, she swore she felt his hand ghost over hers but maybe that was just wishful thinking.

"Look, next time you can't sleep, come and get me, yeah?" His voice was barely above a murmur. "Better than tossing and turning on your own."

"I'm not waking you up just because I'm paranoid Fang." She felt him shrug next to her and he leaned back into the couch.

"You won't be waking me up, trust me." Something in his voice made Max think that maybe, she wasn't the only one having nightmares. "Look, you just need to relax. We're safe here and if someone _does_ come for us, we'll beat their asses six ways from Sunday and show them not to screw with us."

"Easier said than done," Max murmured under her breath. She could feel Fang stretch his arm out behind her and she couldn't stop herself from leaning back onto it. She felt it snake around her shoulders but she quite determinedly kept her eyes away from Fang, whose gaze she could feel intensely studying her. They stayed that way for a time, until Max could hear the water stop running in the kitchen. Tiredness was catching up to her again as she relaxed backwards, knees coming up onto the couch as the tension in her shoulders left her. It wasn't a pleasant tiredness though-it was the type of tired that you fought tooth and bone to stay away from, that solid, inevitable type of tired rather than a pleasant, hazy one that signalled good dreams and a nice, long sleep.

Voices wished them goodnight somewhere behind them and the pair raised their arms lazily in acknowledgment. Max swore she heard Ella whisper something like " _Cute."_ Other than that they were still, mindlessly watching the TV (and sneaking glances at the other when they weren't looking). Fangs hand began a small, smooth rubbing movement at her shoulder and Max leaned further into him without realising.

 _What the hell am I doing, hell hell hell, get up right now, you can't be doing this, not-_

Her internal freakout was cut short when Fang stood up slowly, stretching languidly before rolling his shoulders and glancing towards where the back door was. His eyes flickered back to Max and raised slightly, small smirk on his face. It was like someone had flicked a light switch, the atmosphere around them changing almost immediately.

That heavy tiredness seemed to fall away and Max found herself standing up as well, her own small smirk falling into place.

Yeah, lack of sleep had clearly sent her nuts. Sensible Max wouldn't be doing this. Sensible Max wouldn't be admiring how bloody good he looked in that shirt.

He didn't say anything as he moved backwards towards the door, his eyes never once leaving hers. It was almost predatory the way they moved, lithe and smooth. The door was opened and they were outside, the night air cool as they stepped barefoot onto the ground.

She hadn't realised how close they were to each other, to the point where she could feel Fang's breath ghosting over her lips. Still, he didn't say anything. All hints of tiredness had disappeared now and she was very, _very_ focused.

Even with their eyes locked onto each other, Max could see his wings unfurl and she almost unconsciously let her own spread out, curling them so the tips just breezed over Fang's own. She saw him shiver a bit at that and let a slow smile spread at seeing it.

Sensible Max just got round housed in the head. Oops.

* * *

" _Nudge. Ella. Get up right now!"_

"Huh? Wha?"

"Angel, god damnit, I just want to sleep."

"Come here, quickly! It's Max and Fang!"

"What are they up-Oh."

The three crowded around the window, peering at the scene below. Max and Fang were close-nose to nose close-wings unfurled and tips touching. The darkness kept their features hidden but just the way they held themselves, the way their heads tilted or their wings twitched; it was pretty intense.

Ella blinked rapidly before yanking the curtains shut.

"What the hell?"

"Oh, c'mon!"

"We shouldn't be watching that." She told the two girls quietly. "That's private."

"Did you see their wings though? That was pretty sweet. Come on Ella, you can't tell me you're not curious."

"Screw that, did you see how close they were? That was _intense_."

Ella just sighed and ran a hand over her face.

"It's ridiculous how invested you two are in seeing those two together."

"What's ridiculous Ella, is how much they've danced around each other. I've got good money on those two kissing before the end of the month with Iggy."

"...I suppose one more look couldn't hurt."

* * *

" _Iggy. Iggy!"_

"I swear Gazzy, if your not waking me up for the second coming of the Messiah, me and you are gonna fall out."

"Screw that, it's Max and Fang."

A pause. "Gazzy, I'm _blind you dolt._ What about them?"

"Their...um...wow."

"Gazzy, I swear to-"

"They're close together, like ultra-close. Nose to nose close." Iggy scrambled to sit up at that.

"Are they kissing? I've got money at stake here, my man."

"No, but their wings are out. They're touching tip to tip-it's weirdly sweet actually. Kind of intense too."

"What are they doing?"

"I don't know. Not talking, not kissing. They don't look like they're about to start flying. They're just-"

"Staring at each other. Like they don't know what comes next."

"More like they know what should come next-I think they're afraid."

"You're wise beyond your years Gasman. Shut the curtains and give them some privacy." He heard noise from the room next to him and sighed. "Well, as much privacy as they can with three girls swooning over their romantic asses."

He heard the curtains being drawn about halfway before he heard gasps-from Gazzy and all around the house. Before he could ask what was going on, Gazzy was giving him a running commentary.

"They just started flying but- _wow_ , that was cool-Max just shot up like a rocket and folded her wings around herself when she got real high. Like, she hovered for a moment and started twisting while she fell. Her wings, she snapped them out real sharp like; she must've caught the wind or something, she's just gliding now."

"Come off it, we've all seen Max fly fancy. I'm _blind_ and I know how fancy she can fly when she wants."

"Nah, this was different. The way she twirled through the air, I swear she was showing off or something, she was like a tornado the way she was spinning."

"Don't you dare tell me Fang's just taking that lying down."

Gazzy sniggered a bit at that before continuing.

"Oh no, that boy's got the moves Ig. He took off behind her and sort of stayed out her line of sight while she was gliding. Got himself right over her and all, tapped her shoulder." He sniggered again. "I don't think I've ever seen Max turn so fast."

There was silence after that, although if he strained he could almost hear the pair laughing, the noise as their wings powered through the air.

It'd been a while since he'd heard that. Off Max or Fang.

"Gazzy." He said quietly. "I think you should draw the curtains now."

"I...uh, yeah. Good idea. Privacy and all that, yeah?"

"You're a quick study, Padawan. We'll make something off you yet."

* * *

It was with windswept, messy hair and huge grin plastered on her face that Max went into her room eventually. She heard lots of shushing and movement seconds before she opened the door and just sighed, sitting down on her bed.

"Right, you nosy bunch. Might as well get it out your system now while I'm still stupidly happy."

She couldn't help the grin sneaking over her lips as there was scrambling from the beds and a bedside lamp was turned on, accompanied by hushed whispers.

* * *

Iggy heard the door open and close softly, and slowly moved up in his bed.

"Fang?"

"Yeah." He heard the ruffling of clothes as he got dressed and into his bed.

"You alright?"

"...Brilliant Iggy. More than alright." There was a lightness to his tone that he hadn't heard in weeks, months maybe. "Night."

"Night." And then, as they both settled down, a quieter whisper from the blind boy.

"About time. Atta boy."

* * *

 **A/N-Looking to make a series of very loosely related oneshots here. Let me know how you enjoyed (or disliked) this.**


	2. Chapter 2

There was something exciting, addictive about a fight. The adrenaline roaring through the veins, that keen eye needed to spot a weakness or mistake and pounce on it like prey. A solid fight was like a fast-paced game of chess; calculated, strategic. One slip up and you'd be lucky if it wasn't game over.

As she launched a roundhouse towards Fang's head, Max reflected that when she wasn't fighting desperately for her life, she rather liked fighting. Maybe it was the adrenaline junkie in her. Maybe she just needed to get out more.

In those golden days after Jeb rescued them, when the most she had to worry about was the demons that chased her at night, Jeb had paired Max and Fang off often when sparring. She had secretly loved that, although she would never admit it; Fang hit _hard_. He didn't hold back just because it was her, he moved fast and hard because it was better to get hit hard by him and correct that mistake, than get hit when it mattered and not come back. It was all well and good doing the fancy, Bruce Lee stuff but with Fang, she didn't have a choice in her fighting style. Simple stuff, fast and brutally direct was the only way they could keep pace with each other. Later, it occurred to Max that maybe Jeb let those fights get longer, more ruthless for a reason and it wasn't just to see how good they were getting.

But now, Jeb wasn't around. No one to stop them from kicking the living hell out of each other, from pushing each other straight to the edge.

Fang had ducked under the kick, snapping his own kick into her leg which left an unpleasant tingling sensation as she moved. He followed with a sharp punch, straight to her face and was punished for overextending. Max stepped on the outside of his arm, just barely grazing it as she grabbed hold of the outstretched wrist, yanking it uncomfortably high behind his back, her body pressed against his.

His breathing was ragged and hard, the same as hers. Max had lost track of how long they'd been sparring. To be honest she didn't really care.

"Tap out." She hissed in his ear, giving the arm the smallest of tugs upwards. She felt him shiver almost imperceptibly against her and her heart rate went slamming through the roof.

Maybe it was a good job Jeb had been around to stop them from getting _too_ heated.

Fang turned his head so she could just see the corner of his eyes, his lips parted in a pained grin. Too late, she registered his foot moving to stamp brutally on hers, the pain causing her hold to loosen. He twisted out of it, the arm of his hoodie slipping off as he did so.

"Oops." He grinned at her again, eyes shining as he shrugged the hoodie off, leaving him in his black shirt and jeans. "Is that really the best you got?"

Then again, maybe it was a good job he wasn't around anymore. Angel, Gazzy and Nudge might be acting as 'referees' from their sitting position on the grass but she knew as well as Fang that they'd let this go on as long as possible.

* * *

"Uh, Iggy?"

"What's up Doc?"

"Is there a specific reason Fang and Max have been fighting for the past ten minutes?"

He shrugged.

"Honestly Dr. Martinez, I gave up trying to understand those two a long time ago. You're probably better asking Nudge or someone, see _how_ they're fighting."

She leaned on the windowsill, watching as Max twisted out of a chokehold, flashed a grin and just straight up lashed a kick into Fang's chest. She moved in quickly after him as he stumbled, one hand on his shoulder, leg behind his and swept him onto the grassy ground. He rolled and the pair were grappling, too fast and too technical for Dr. Martinez to make much sense of the movements.

"Well, they're using a lot of locks, chokeholds. Max just took Fang down and now they're grappling on the ground."

"Oh, really?" Iggy's voice took on an interested tone as he cocked his head from his position on the couch. "Huh. Only heard of them doing that a few times before."

"So?"

"Dr M, Fang is many things but eloquent around Max isn't one of them. Max just doesn't _do_ feelings. She doesn't know how to handle them around Fang."

"So, what? They're _flirting?_ "

Iggy smirked at that, standing up and stretching. "Well, we never pretended to be well adjusted Doc."

* * *

Fang was lying on his back, legs hooked over Max's as he went to apply the chokehold. Elbows were raining down on his ribs but were quickly cut short as he lightly applied some pressure, making her breathing even more ragged than usual. Not that he was faring much better.

"Tap out." He hissed in her ear as her body arced and hands scrambled for a grip on his arm. Now it was her turn to shiver almost unnoticeably and for a second he thought she was panicking but then, a sharp stinging sensation as she dug her fingernails into his nails. He let out a sharp hiss of breath and his choke loosened. Max's legs snaked out from under his and before he knew it, he had a forearm jammed into his throat as Max cocked her free hand back.

Her face was flushed and sweaty, arms covered in a thin sheen of sweat from the intensity and length of their fight and she was panting, even as she smirked down at him victoriously. Fang gave himself a good mental slap and blinked rapidly. Perhaps admiring how good she looked at this moment and time _wasn't_ the wisest course of action. Then again, agreeing to spar for the sake of keeping themselves sharp with Max of all people possibly wasn't his wisest move either, especially given their track record.

Well. Time to fight dirty.

Fang spun his hips sharply, back lifting off the ground enough that one of his wings could snap out and he clipped Max in the head with it as he turned her onto her back, using his wing to block off any possible escape on the left side. Her own wing had come up and curled into Fang's body to prevent him from using his other one. It just happened to force him down so he could feel Max's hot breath on his face, rapid and panting.

They froze.

Faintly, Fang registered his heart rate spiking and his face heating up. All he seemed to be able to focus on was Max; her eyes, her lips, the way her cheeks flushed. The small widening of her eyes as the situation settled in on her, the way her head tilted almost curiously. Adrenaline must've kicked in hard because the Max that Fang knew wouldn't be leaning into him, however slowly she was doing it now. Maybe it was that roaring feeling that had him lean down as well, his lips just ghosting over her for half a second before-

"Alright, you two that's enough! Get inside and get a shower before you hurt yourselves!" Dr. Martinez's voice came from an open window and Fang couldn't help but murmur some very choice words under his breath for a second. He thought he heard Max curse quietly as well as her wing fell off him, allowing him up. If only it was that easy.

He offered her his hand and she took it, springing up and quickly dropping the hand. They awkwardly looked anywhere but at each other as they trod inside with the other three and any brushes of the hand were accompanied by red faces and a murmured 'sorry'.

"Smooth guys," He heard Gazzy mutter. "Real smooth."

* * *

 **A/N-Slightly shorter one here. If only it was that easy.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

It was with a quiet groan that Fang sat himself down on the couch that night. His body was aching dully, a pleasant tiredness spreading throughout him. The bruises were already coming out on his ribs and Gazzy had taken great amusement in poking them over and over again until Fang had threatened to paint all his clothes the brightest, most obnoxious pink he could find.

That had stopped him pretty quickly.

It was with a hint of grim satisfaction that he watched Max throw herself down on one of the free chairs, groaning just as he had, rubbing her ribs with a wince. Of course that was until he moved, accidentally knocking his shoulder as he adjusted himself. A slow hiss involuntarily escaped him and Fang heard sniggering from her place on the chair.

So it was going to be one of _those_ nights then.

"Oh, man up," Max said, tone teasing. This was quickly followed by a noise of surprise and lots of groaning as Fang lashed a cushion at her and she jerked too quickly to avoid the truly devastating missile.

"Oh, woman up," Fang replied, tone just as light while Max let her head drop back with a hiss, sliding down the chair. She hadn't even bothered moving the cushion from where it had ended up on her shoulder. Without lifting her head, she just lifted her shirt up enough to show him the bruises coming up over her ribs.

Uh oh.

It took Fang a great effort to tear his eyes away and tell her, "That's nothing." When she lifted her head up, eyebrows raised he just yanked his own shirt up, exposing his own bruises before he could lose his nerve.

The thing about Max was, it was _easy_ to see when you got to her. Her face flushed rather attractively (like it was now), and her eyes got a touch more intense as she would cock her head almost curiously. It took a few seconds before she scoffed and seemed to force herself to relax, her hand letting her shirt drop ( _oh thank god_ ).

"Admit I kicked your skinny ass then?" Fang's eyes narrowed at the challenge.

"I seem to remember being the one on top when we finished."

"Did I tap out? No sir, I did not." Fang was secretly thankful for her avoidance of what happened _after_.

"Don't make come over there. I know your feet are ticklish."

Now it was Max's turn to narrow her eyes.

"Come anywhere near me and they'll never find the body." She warned as Fang stood up with a lazy half-grin. He did his best not to wince as he stretched but _god damn_ , his ribs were hurting something fierce. It was worth it to see Max grab the pillow and wave it (in a rather intimidating fashion, he might add) at him as if it would warn him off.

"A cushion," Fang all but drawled. "Terrifying."

"Not as terrifying as what I'll do to you if you even _think_ about touching my feet."

He managed a grand total of two steps forward before the cushion had been bounced off his head, swiftly followed by another hitting his torso. Fang hesitated for a moment, blinking in an almost dazed way as his eyes moved from the cushions on the floor to where Max was now standing with a smirk.

"Did you just assault me with a cushion?"

"Cushions, actually. Plural."

"Oh." Fang blinked again, not quite knowing what to do. "You do realise this means war, don't you?"

"I've got a black belt in cushion-fu, and I'm not afraid to use those ninja skills against you." The smirk grew into a grin and Max beckoned to him like she was out of one of those old martial arts films. "Do your worst."

Fang just shrugged before quickly grabbing the cushions on the floor. Before he could throw them however, he was interrupted by noises coming from the kitchen. Iggy and Ella's voices to be exact. Fang cocked his head towards the noise, cushion hanging limply from his hand as he tried to hear what was being said. Max moved up beside him, as stealthy as a bruised, not so ninja bird kid could.

"He should've heard us," Max said with a small frown after a small time where Fang couldn't make out anything. "Iggy would've heard us if he was concentrating."

"Well, I mean if there's bacon around and he's tired, I can definitely understand why he hasn't..." He got a roll of the eyes for his excellent skills of deduction as Max moved forward to the kitchen door frame on tip-toe. Honestly, if Fang wasn't so curious as what was going on in there, it would've been hilarious how 'Tom and Jerry' it was. As she reached the wall and pressed herself against it, sliding towards the door Fang swore he could hear her humming the Pink Panther theme to herself.

"You are such a nerd." He hissed out, conscious of how loud he was speaking now. "Cut it out before he hears you."

"Oh, like you can talk." Max hissed back to him but she stopped as she reached the door and peeked her head around for a few seconds. When she pulled it back, she had a surprised expression on her face and seemed to have to stop herself from having another look. When she made her way back to him, she was making small shooing motions with her hands like she had when they were kids.

"Go on, it's time for bed now." Fang just raised an eyebrow at this.

"I'm not five Max. That one doesn't work anymore." He paused for a moment before going. "What did you see?"

"Nothing Fang. We should...We should just go." Well, her voice didn't _sound_ worried but Fang knew she was good at making herself sound confident when she wasn't at all.

"What was going on in there Max?"

"Ig...Ella...Oh hell, just drop it Fang. It was private. None of our business."

"Alright." He said, nodding his head. Max almost let out a sigh of relief, but quickly caught it (and Fang's wrist) as he made to move to the kitchen door.

"What are you doing?" She hissed at him. Fang tried his hardest to ignore how warm her hand was around his wrist and he most certainly did not hesitate before answering because of how close they were. No sir. The Prince of Darkness did _not_ hesitate.

"...Looking, seen as you're refusing to tell me anything." Max's grip tightened and curiosity won him over. The cushion he had been holding came up and smacked Max in the face, allowing Fang to slip his wrist free. He turned and threw it at her to give himself enough time to make it to the door frame and he had to stop himself from humming the James Bond theme to himself.

Now _that. That_ was ninja.

Fang didn't know what he had been expecting when he looked around the door. He certainly hadn't been expecting to see Iggy pushed up against the counter, Ella standing close in front of him. Even though he knew Ella was one of them, one of the good dudes (gals, whatever), he still had to squash that brotherly instinct to move in, move Ella away from his sibling.

Ella had one of Iggy's hands in hers and seemed to be brushing it over her mouth. Fang immediately felt a rush of discomfort at seeing it and jerked his head back around as he heard her say, "That's what a smile feels like. I don't know if you can remember how they look but..."

Max was right. He shouldn't be hearing this.

Max was glaring at him and she hit him over the head with the cushion half-heartedly before throwing it back on the couch. Fang didn't even bother defending himself as he sat down, Max next to him and there was silence for a while.

Max was the first to break it, with a quiet voice.

"She was showing him what a smile felt like...Christ Fang, he can't remember what someone _smiling_ looks like because he's been blind so long." Fang knew how she felt. A regret that, while they took down Itex, they couldn't find someone to help the only one of them who'd been physically impaired by those whitecoat bastards.

"I forget sometimes," Fang told her quietly. "He's so good at getting around, at really _getting_ what makes someone tick, at making those bombs of his, I forget sometimes he's blind." Christ, he felt terrible for that. Every time he realised what he was doing, he felt awful for it but to see Iggy's loss represented so rawly….

Fang had never really seen Iggy as a vulnerable person before. It hurt something awful to get an idea of what his brother was really going through. He couldn't imagine what it'd be like to go without seeing Max's cocky smirk, her full-blown grins, the way her eyes crinkled a bit when she was laughing without restraint.

"Well, there is one positive to it all, I suppose." Max wasn't looking at him as she spoke, her eyes to the floor. He knew she was feeling pretty bad for Iggy as well. "Never thought Iggy would be Ella's type though. Or her, his type." She sighed and ran her hand through her hair before standing up.

"I'm going to bed. Give those two a bit of privacy."

"Yeah. Yeah, good idea."

They walked together in a comfortable silence up the stairs, Max stopping outside the girls room. She caught Fang's wrist again as he made to go past and he stopped, turning back to her. She was rubbing the back of her neck almost nervously.

"I-goodnight Fang." Quickly, she leaned in and gave him a lingering peck on the cheek. He couldn't help the small smile slide onto his face and when she pulled back, Max had her own subdued smile playing at her mouth before she pushed the door open and went inside her room.

* * *

 **A/N-I got them Iggy feels.**


	4. Chapter 4

Iggy was confused. Very confused. Not that this was in and of itself anything special of course. It was the cause of his confusion that was...well, confusing. He just couldn't get that feeling of soft lips under his hands out of his head, the small quirk to them as he could literally feel the smile playing against his skin.

Damn Ella. Damn her and her kindness and her soft lips and…

Iggy groaned rather loudly, hands coming up to drag over his face slowly as he did so. _Why_ did he have to open his big, stupid mouth about _smiles_ of all things? All he had wanted was a goddamn drink but now all he wanted was those soft-

Okay. So his night had escalated quickly. Being pushed up against a kitchen counter by a pretty girl (was Ella pretty? She sounded pretty. Her voice was nice and gentle and-) was always a fun experience blind or not. And she had been _close_. He guessed that now he knew how Max and Fang felt all the time, heart pounding like it wanted to jump out his chest, stomach flipping like pancakes in the morning…

She smelled good as well. And no, _not_ in that weird way you probably think Iggy meant. Being that close to someone with a nose like Iggy's, it was like refusing to breathe. It just couldn't be helped.

Choc-chips in case you were wondering. And the good ones, not the cheap, crap ones from the shop.

Iggy wondered if this was how Max felt around Fang all the time. Jumpy and hyper-aware of every little movement, noticing every little detail and only realising later on how bloody _obvious_ you were. It felt like you were an open window, a breeze just drifting in whether you liked it or not. You just...didn't get a choice.

 _This is who you like,_ that wind whispered. _This is why you like who you like. This is you at your most vulnerable. Enjoy!_

Iggy didn't like that vulnerable feeling. He figured why it was Max kept running from Fang whenever he kissed her. It was scary, like willingly jumping off a cliff and not opening your wings. Alright. Ella had got under his skin and she was there to stay. He could swear and moan and groan about that all he wanted. He could be a useless, angsty git about it or he could-

Oh who was he kidding? How the hell was he meant to kiss her if he couldn't see her?

"Iggy," A voice growled from Fang's bed. "I swear if you groan one more time..."

"Oh, don't mind me," Iggy growled right back. "I forgot you're the only one here allowed to have girl problems." So maybe snarling like that hadn't been his best idea. But, _damn_ , it felt good to direct all that confusion somewhere.

There was silence for a second and part of Iggy thought (hoped?) Fang had gone back to sleep. Then he heard covers shifting as Fang rolled onto his back.

"Ella?"

"How the-"

"Me and Max saw you in the kitchen. Figured you were pretty distracted." Iggy didn't know what to say about that. Didn't really have anything to say. Could've been worse. Could've been Gazzy. "You kiss her?"

"You kiss Max?" Iggy's voice was hushed in case he woke Gazzy but his tone was sharp.

"Point taken." Fang grunted after a small time. They lapsed back into silence, more comfortable than awkward. Then Fang, _Fang_ of all people started talking first about whatever was on his mind, no prompting needed.

World really was going to hell.

"She kissed me though."

"Really?"

He made a quiet affirming hum. "On the cheek. Only a little one but still-"

"You can't stop thinking about it." Iggy finished for him. "You start thinking about all the little details that you never _actually_ noticed in the moment."

"Oh my god, you're a goddamned romantic."

"You think I get by on my stellar good looks and dry wit?"

"Not really. I think you get by with lots of explosions and sarcasm."

"Well, explosions are pretty to look at and dry wit may as well be sarcasm. Honestly, I'll take what I can right now." He heard Fang snort quietly.

"...She likes your wings. Can't take her eyes off them."

"Fang, I swear if you're winding me up..."

"I'm not. Every time you go flying, she glances at them, like she can't help herself. Not in disgust or anything. She just genuinely likes them." Iggy could hear Fang scratching at the back of his neck. "Figured you might like to know."

More silence. If he listened carefully, Iggy swore he could hear someone snoring in the room next door.

"Why haven't you kissed Max again Fang?

"Oh, I am going nowhere _near_ that one."

"I'm serious. If you kiss her now, I've got good money that says she'll happily kiss you right back."

"Not talking about this Iggy. Go to sleep."

"Literally, good money. You kiss Max, she kisses you back before the month's out and I'm sorted for bacon for the next month."

"Fang?"

"Fannnnngggg?"

He heard a long, drawn out sigh from the boy's bed.

"Oh, don't be so dramatic."

"Look," Fang hissed out (he did a lot of that). "I won't kiss Max first because every time I have, she's freaked out and run away. I don't care that it's _likely_ she'll kiss me back, I care that I don't freak her out and scare her off because I'd rather be her best friend than kiss her once and lose her forever. It's Max, Iggy, she'll kiss me when she feels comfortable with it. _If_ she feels comfortable with it."

"...Wow."

"Shut up."

"You said _I_ was the romantic? Goddamn boy, I've never heard you speak so much in my life. Shakespeare eat thou heart out. That was poetry right there."

A pillow hit his chest and Iggy couldn't help the shit-eating grin spread over his face. Nothing like inflicting a bit of misery to make a lad feel better about himself.

"You know, Iggy, one of these days that mouth of yours is gonna get you into some deep trouble."

"If it wasn't for my big mouth, Fangy boy, I wouldn't be in this mess with Ella."

He heard more shifting from Fang's bed, as if he was rolling onto his side.

"Look, Iggy, you want my advice? Don't even try to fight it. If it's the real thing, you won't have a chance and it'll make everything ten times harder. Just...roll with the punches."

"Did you just compare our hopeless love lives to a _fight?_ "

"Goodnight Iggy."

"Really? _A fight?_ "

" _Goodnight Iggy._ "

* * *

 **A/N-Shortest chapter yet, but hopefully the quality makes up for it. Tried to focus a bit more on dialogue at the expense of description this time, considering the importance of voices and sounds to Iggy's character (in my head anyway). This might be going on the backburner for a time as the holidays just finished, but I'll try to keep a semi-regular schedule in regards to updating.  
**


	5. Chapter 5

"You didn't sleep again." A statement, not a question.

"Mhm." A grunt.

"I thought I told you to come get me if you couldn't sleep."

Max shrugged. "Sleep is for the weak. Fire cannot kill a dragon."

"Sadly you are neither a dragon or Daenerys." Max was a different beast altogether. Fang _tried_ not to worry too much about Max's lack of sleep but when she was collapsing on the couch, her head on his lap? That wasn't very Max.

Also, the temptation to run his hand through her hair was just _far_ too great and if she kept looking up at him with those half-lidded eyes, Fang would not be responsible for what he did. Seriously, it should be illegal to look that good.

"Hush." Was her sharp, witty response to him. Oh, how he was wounded.

"You know if you fall asleep now, you just wont sleep again tonight?"

"Then you'll just have to keep me awake then, won't you?"

Oh, Fang could think of a number of ways to keep Max awake. Sadly, tickling would lead to his untimely end and kissing was...well...

Huh. Maybe he _could_ have some fun with this. Winding Max up was always entertaining.

Before he could overthink what he was about to do, Fang leaned down and made his voice as low as he could. Bless puberty for not making his voice crack.

"You know Max..." Closed eyes opened in curiosity, and Fang heard her breath hitch a bit as she realised how close he was. Secretly, Fang was struggling to keep his own breathing steady. "You really shouldn't say stuff like that to me..."

"What?"

Fang grinned wickedly, gave her a lingering kiss on the cheek, straightened up and promptly shoved her onto the floor. He wasn't stupid. Amidst the (admittedly impressive) rather creative swearing, he was up and on the move, making a somewhat swift exit before what he'd done caught up to them. He caught a small glimpse of Max sat up straight, bright red and Fang couldn't help but bow theatrically before he left the room, grinning.

 _God_ , she was going to kill him.

...So worth it.

Before he could realise what happened, he was trapped against a wall (god, the stairs were right there. _So close_ ) with a very angry ( _flustered?)_ Max pushing him against it. Now it was Fang's breath that hitched in his throat, Max the one leaning in close to him.

"And what..." Oh, hell, she was practically purring in his ear. He wasn't the only one that could do husky voices and _damn_ , that was sending shivers down his spine. "...was _that?"_

"Er...keeping you awake?" Christ, he was in trouble. Big, big trouble.

"I didn't quite have that in mind when I said that, you know." She murmured and was it Fang or was she looking at his lips with a wicked gleam in her eyes?

 _Don't ask it, don't ask it, don't ask it. "_ What did you have in mind?" _Godfuckingdamnit Fang you-_

All thoughts stopped when Max placed a thumb lightly at his lips and dragged it down slowly with a grin just as wicked as the gleam in her eye. Common sense told Fang that she was just winding him up, and sleep was making her bolder than usual. Every other sense in Fang screamed at him to just kiss her senseless and be done with it. Common sense was in short supply and it was only stubborn pride that stopped him from listening to the roaring blood in his ears.

"Something a bit more...tame, honestly."

 _This is tame?_

Before Fang could reply, Max had removed her hand, replacing it with a lightning fast kiss at the corner of his mouth. And then, she was gone, walking quickly up the stairs after flashing him a bright grin, her cheeks flaming furiously.

It took Fang a couple of seconds to pull himself together after that. His heart was pounding and he had that heady, rollercoaster feeling in his stomach that made him giddy, sick and pleasantly dizzy all at once. It wasn't too dissimilar to that rushing sensation you experienced as you hurtled towards the ground, hitting terminal velocity seconds before your wings snapped out.

Only thing was, Fang didn't think he _wanted_ to stop falling.

* * *

Max didn't swear much. Saying that, fuck fuck fuck _fuck_ , what the _fuck_ did she think she was doing? Teasing had not been in the plan, doing that thing with his lip had not been in the plan and Christ, kissing Fang on the corner of the mouth _certainly_ hadn't been in the plan. She didn't even have a damn plan to begin with, what the hell was-

It must be the lack of sleep. That had to be it. It wasn't the way Fang's hair had fallen when she had pushed him against the wall, or the way his breath sucked in when she had placed her thumb on his lip and it definitely wasn't the way she had visibly flustered him. _Fang. Flustered. By her._

Yeah. No. Had to be the lack of sleep.

She didn't even know what the hell she had been doing the past few days. Sparring and having that little brush of the lips at the end? That weird (see: _awesome_ ) night flying session they'd had? These were not things that Max did. Sensible Max stayed far, _far_ away from those things.

Sensible Max just wasn't around much anymore it seemed.

Was it fun? Yes. Definitely. Oh god, it was the best fun she'd had in a while.

Did she enjoy those fleeting moments when she lost her mind and gave him a peck on the cheek? Admittedly, that last one had been enjoyably closer to his _very_ nice looking lips. And hell yes was the answer to that one. Max didn't want to stop doing that, whether she had her sensible head on or not.

And she definitely liked watching Fang unwind and relax more than he had in years. She'd be lying if she said she didn't a small amount of pride in the fact she was the only one Fang seemed to properly unwind around but watching him laugh more freely, talk a lot more was something special in itself.

So why the hell didn't she have Fang up against that wall still, kissing him until they were both breathless?

Max made to move out the bedroom door, froze, groaned and retreated, letting it close shut.

So she could take on a metric fuckton of Erasers with no hesitation but she couldn't even go out and kiss someone she knew for a near certainty would kiss her back?

 _You feel too vulnerable._

Oh no.

 _Oh yes. Sorry Max. Couldn't help it._

"Angel," Max hissed. "Out of my head."

 _Aye Aye Captain. Your language is_ appalling _in your head by the way._

"Angel. Out. Of. My. Head."

"Sorry." She chirped from her place on the bed, magazine in hand, not sounding sorry at all. "Fang does the exact same thing all the time though , if it helps."

"Angel, sweetie, I love you, I really do but-"

-You could kill me some-No, No MAX STOP!"

Loud, raucous laughter exploded from Angel as Max pounced, fingers tickling mercilessly at Angel's ribs. Her magazine fluttered to the ground forgotten and Max could almost forget about the fact she'd genuinely almost kissed her best friend because he'd just decided to _annoy_ her.

Almost being the key word.

"What on earth...?" came Ella's voice, lighter than usual. There was a small break in Max's unrelenting assault and Angel started speaking before Max could stop her.

"Max just realised she _likes_ likes Fang and wants to kiss him but can't because she's scared and Fang wants to kiss Max but-" Her gasped words were broken by Max's hand muffling her. Ella grinned widely, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Well that would explain why he looked so dazed when I crossed him on the stairs."

Max couldn't help herself and her hand slid off Angel's mouth.

"He was still on the stairs?" Ella and Angel roared in laughter while Max just flushed red. She seemed to be doing a lot of that lately.

She definitely preferred when it Fang was setting her cheeks on fire. It was with a great resolve that she decided, screw it, she was going to be kiss him hard and senseless the next time the oppurtunity arose. She'd taken on Itex and won, she'd beat the living snot out of a buttload of Erasers and lived to see the end. She could damn well kiss Fang and not freak out about how eerily vulnerable it made her.

Angel stopped laughing for a moment and turned to Ella, smile horrifyingly innocent.

"Ella?"

"Uh oh."

"You never told us that-"

"Angel, I swear, I will never give you another sweet again if you finish that sentence"

"-that you liked Iggy's company _that_ much."

Now it was Max's turn to laugh as Ella picked a cushion up, Angel slipping out the door quickly with a wink at Max.

* * *

 **A/N-Thank you so much for the reviews! If I wasn't motivated beforehand to provide some quality oneshots, I certainly am now.  
**


	6. Chapter 6

"Iggy, how do you fly? You can't exactly see if you're about to slam into a tree." Ella's question was tinged with a gentle curiosity, like she just couldn't stop herself from asking him.

"With extreme grace and style, of course." Was Iggy's immediate response and in his mind, he could almost imagine the kind smile on her face as she responded.

"Obviously."

Iggy's head tilted as he shrugged the jacket off, letting his wings out slowly, stretching them out like one stretched their arms out after a long sleep. Above him, he could hear Nudge and Gazzy laughing as they dive bombed each other. You lost if you got grazed by the wing tips of the attacker.

"...I can show you if you want."

"Um...Will I regret asking how?" Iggy had turned towards the sound of her voice and was walking towards her, cocky smile slipping into place. This was _his_ element.

"Probably. Trust me?"

"Always." The response was immediate and it gave Iggy that warm, tingly feeling in his stomach. Ugh. Feelings.

 _This is_ _probably_ _a terrible idea._ "Close your eyes then and turn around." He paused for a second before taking an educated guess at where her stomach was, wrapping his arms around her. "Scream and I _will_ drop you."

* * *

Max made no effort to hide her grin as Iggy flipped in the air, wings folding around himself as he rocketed towards the ground like a bullet. Ella had a tight grip on Iggy's hands around her stomach and let out a whoop of excitement as his wings splayed out mere seconds before they hit the ground, catching the wind and guiding them back up. He might be blind but Iggy may as well have had full sight when he was in the air. The way he could read the slightest breeze, could guess when there was an obstacle in his way by the way the air moved around it-Watching Iggy fly was something special alright. And Ella seemed to be enjoying it well enough.

It was fun, just hovering in the sky, watching the others relax and have fun. It felt like _months_ since Max had last seen everyone look so relaxed, so-

A wing tip grazed her leg and Max looked down in time to watch Nudge grin, swoop away and shout "You're it!" at her. Alright then.

Max twisted her head as Nudge flew away, seeing Angel bank upwards from behind her in a desperate attempt to kill her speed and get away from Max. _Too late._ With a wicked grin in her direction, Max turned just as Angel looped so the younger child was angled towards the ground, wings slowly flapping to control her descent.

Max didn't have much use for such silly self-preservation instincts. Instead, she just folded her wings around her so she dropped like a rock, snapping her wings out ferociously fast half a second before she collided with Angel and utilised her momentum in a quick barrel roll, so that she was under the smaller child, forcing her to glide upwards to avoid her.

"So, Angel," Max began casually as if Angel wasn't in a desperate attempt to not be _it_. "What was that you were saying before about me and Fang?"

"Absolutely nothing!" She yelled back over the wind, head turning this way and that quickly in some attempt to find an escape. Max was flying upside-down, mirroring Angel's movements tightly, their wing strokes virtually synchronised. "I said nothing! Go get Gazzy instead of me!"

"Hmmm..." Max put a relaxed hand at her chin in exaggerated thought for a moment before grinning again. "Nah. You're it sweetie." Max twisted, her wing tips brushing the front of Angel's shirt moments before Max angled herself towards the ground and poured on the speed. Adrenaline roared through her veins as she glimpsed Angel in the corner of her eye, determinedly pursuing her. Perhaps a little bit of pride trickled through Max at the way she was stubbornly following her, despite the speed being a _touch_ too fast for her.

Moments before she hit the ground and became a Max-sized hole in the mud, her wings angled up and she felt her shoes graze the tips of the grass briefly before she was gliding back up again, angled towards the tree-line. Elation flooded her body and Max heard laughter above and just behind her as Angel copied her, doing a quick twirl in the air to kill some of the sudden speed she'd picked up. As she turned her head back, she saw Fang lounging in one of the tree branches, watching the chase with a subdued smile on his face.

As Angel carried on towards Fang in the treeline, Max descended and landed gracefully a little ways away. She had a feeling she knew what Angel was up to. She knew she should start flying away _right now,_ but a morbid curiosity made her stay and watch. She sat down on an old tree stump, drawing in breath she knew would be in rare supply shortly.

It definitely wasn't the fact that she almost _wanted_ Fang to chase after her. No one else could match her for speed and technique in the air (when she wasn't going all 'meep meep' on everyone anyway) and, well…it was Fang. He was always guaranteed to push her, one way or the other.

Her breathing began to even out as Angel landed at the foot of Fang's tree, beckoning him down eagerly. Max rolled her eyes as Angel waggled her eyebrows at her whilst Fang jumped down from the branch, landing beside her with that same subdued smile. She saw Angel point at Max and they locked eyes as Max stood up, rolling her shoulders in preparation. Fang mirrored her, his dark wings unfurling as he rolled his own shoulders with a lazy, almost predatory grin.

He held his hand out to Angel, looking straight at Max. She took a few steps forward, ready to turn at a moments notice.

Angel jumped and slapped his hand, grinning widely as Fang kicked off from the tree and began to chase Max.

"Fang's it!" Max heard her yell with glee but she had already turned, using the stump as a springboard as she caught the wind, spying Fang catching up to her as she circled and ascended slowly.

 _Bad idea Max, very bad idea._

Instead of swooping up to try and intercept her as the others would've have done, Fang continued on for a bit, ascending behind her rather than try to catch her when he knew he couldn't. A quick turn of her head let Max see the large, sweeping way in which Fang was gliding, almost like he was herding cattle.

And straight in front of her was the treeline. In a forest, fast usually meant dead. Well, dead or really, _really_ good.

Fine. She could play at that. The wind rustled a bit stronger than usual and Max caught the current spontaneously, letting it carry her towards the trees fast and hard. Fang did the same and was close on her tail.

One after another they smashed past the treeline and into the forest, tilting sideways to squeeze between thick trunks, branches snapping and catching on their shoulders as they sharply turned this way and that in an almost lethal game of cat and mouse. It was lucky they had such fast reactions, Max realised not for the first time as she folded her wings in, dropping sharply before snapping them out again to dodge a particularly solid looking branch. One wrong move and she was in for one _very_ painful mistake.

Fang was opposite her out of nowhere, the trees between them almost acting as a mirror line as they ducked and weaved amongst the branches. Max barely caught them but just glimpsed the small, jerky movements Fang was making as if he was considering trying to roll between the trees in an attempt to get closer.

Well, now that just wouldn't do.

With her arms shielding her face, Max angled sharply up as she came across an opening in the branches, only a few thin ones snapping against her arms. She broke through the canopy and kept on going up, gradually slowing down as her altitude became higher and the air became thinner. Credit where it was due, Fang's reaction was instant and he was maybe three seconds behind Max as she broke through the clouds, barrel rolling to level out. Dangerously, Fang tilted backwards, wing tips angled up and momentum sent him flying parallel to Max, not quite close enough to touch.

"'Sup." He grinned madly and Max almost fell out the air there and then. She could count on one hand the times she'd seen Fang grin so widely and she was pretty sure heart attacks accompanied most, if not all of them.

"That was nowhere near as cool as you thought it was."

"Don't worry Max, no one can hear you up here. You can admit you're impressed."

"Someone's feeling cocky today."

"What can I say? My magic eight ball came up good today."

Max snorted and rolled again, diving towards the ground with tremendous speed. Fang kept parallel to her, so they were face to face and the pair folded their wings simultaneously as they fell below the clouds, the backyard directly below them with the Flock flying below them. She could see Fang struggling to try and angle himself so he could get close enough to touch and knew, as soon as their wings snapped out he had her.

As if.

Her wings unfurled just enough to catch the wind and Max injected some of that superhuman speed into her descent as she flapped precisely, hitting terminal velocity seconds before Fang did. She knew the chase was nearing it's end and that if Fang was unable to tag her here, she would be scot-free. Relatively, anyway.

Max counted down in her head as the angle Fang was on put him just off level with her head, the wind snatching at their shirts and causing them to ripple. _Five._ The sound of the wind roaring in her ears, along with her ragged breathing and Fang's panting, was all she could hear as they fell, closer and closer to the earth. _Four._ She hoped the Flock moved out of the way. She didn't much fancy crashing into one of them at this speed. _Three._ They must've cut quite the sight, streaking down towards the ground one after the other. Even Max had to admit, they had _style. Two._ This was it. Do or die. If she was right, she would win, she would've beaten Fang. Of course, he'd probably want a rematch...Now that could be fun. _One._

 _Now!_

Max's wings snapped out with confidence, the wind painfully pulling at her wings as her momentum was killed and almost seemed to cause her to hover in place for a second. For a split second, Fang was almost nose to nose with her, eyes wide in surprise as his own wings snapped out and he sharply pulled up and away from Max's sight.

Now she was twisting out of control in the air, angled straight towards the ground and _god_ , that was hurting her wings something awful. Max gritted her teeth and sheer will kept her wings solid against the unrelenting air, stopping her tumbling descent. A mixture of adrenaline, elation and pride flooded Max's system as she levelled out on her descent. _She'd done it, ha, beat that Ang-_

And then, seconds before she was about to land gracefully on her feet in a running landing, something hard and heavy smashed into her sides, and they were sent tumbling across the grass, dirt being sprayed up as Max and her attacker rolled one over another, eventually slowing down. On instinct, Max's wings wrapped around the aggressor, keeping them close until they stopped.

They stopped with her on top of a panting Fang, cocky smile still in place, chest heaving. His dark, right wing had looped over Max, stopping hers from entrapping him, just as Max's lighter left wing had done the same around him.

"Gotcha," He panted breathlessly, eyes intense and locked on Max's in the way it did when he was considering doing something usually stupid.

Max's wings and shoulder muscles burned in that oddly satisfying way one's muscles burned after a long workout. Her own chest was heaving as she sucked in breath, the sudden impact shocking her.

"You...cheated." She managed to gasp out. "That was...stupid...and dangerous…and-"

"Incredibly cool...and fun." Well, at least he was as breathless as she was. "I got you...fair and square."

 _Kiss him hard and senseless._

Oh, fuck it. She was done dancing around this.

"Congrats." She breathed out after a moment of electric silence, and before she could hesitate or doubt herself, she leaned down and pressed her lips against Fang's with just as much purpose as she had flown with. It took a terrifying, long second for him to respond but when he did, Max was _very_ happy that adrenaline ruled her head. After that, every other thought was pretty much along the lines of ' _Holy hell, Fang can kiss.'_

The kiss gradually slowed down, from hard and fast and eager to slower, closer, more intimate as Max felt a hand at her back, fingers slowly tangling in her hair as her own hands moved to twine themselves in Fang's long hair. Her lungs were burning something fierce but _she didn't care._ In the back of her head, she was still freaking out that ' _Christ, this is Fang, and you, and you're both kissing, what the hell-'_

It was easier to ignore that itch as a pleasant haze spread throughout Max, just as warm as the sun on her wings had been. There was just Fang, Fang's wing around her, Fang's hand in her hair, Fang's lips at hers, responding softly and gently. It was with a small exhale that they broke apart, breathing still heavy but more muted somehow. Despite the daze in her mind, Max swore she heard Fang make the smallest of disappointed noises.

 _You kissed him. Goddamn, that was_ good.

She made sure not to take her eyes off Fang, not removing her hands from his messy, windswept hair. She noted (with absolutely no complaint) that his hands hadn't moved either.

"I...You...you just..." Christ, she had made Fang _stutter?_ "Wow."

Yeah, wow pretty much summed it up. Max made a small noise of agreement in the back of her throat. She didn't think that lovely tingling sensation at her lips would let her speak properly for a few moments.

"Are you going to kiss me every time I catch you now? Believe me, I really won't be complaining." Max couldn't help but laugh at that, Fang's lips ( _she had been kissing those a moment ago)_ tilting up in a crooked smile, eyes gleaming.

"I'll consider it," She responded, leaning down so she was nose to nose with him. "That doesn't mean you win by the way."

"Of course not. Rematch then?"

"Naturally."

Max rolled off him and stood up, helping Fang to his feet. She couldn't help the small smile on her face, much as she suspected Fang couldn't stop his either.

"You're it." Fang murmured to her when he was stood up, standing close to her.

"Mhm." Was this the part where they took off and she started chasing Fang again? She wasn't much fancying that now that she thought about it. Her stomach was rolling in a sickeningly excited fashion and Max thought she might throw up if she started to fly again.

Ah, there was the inevitable panic. Push it down Max, push it down. You only went and kissed Fang, he kissed you back and it was _amazing_. That's all. Nothing major, don't freakout, he won't leave like-

And then her internal panic was cut short by lips once more upon hers, and they were sweetly sliding away again, lips soft and gentle, insistent and eager all at once as their rematch was promptly forgotten about.

OF course, they'd forgotten about the audience above them. They were soon reminded though when a cacophony of noise descended on them, the Flock shouting and laughing as Max and Fang split apart, red-faced and grinning.

She knew they had to talk soon. That could wait for a while though, she thought, as Gazzy and Iggy high-fived a reluctant Fang whilst she was jumped by an excited Nudge and smug Angel.

* * *

 **A/N-That was both the hardest and most enjoyable chapter I've done so far. This started out a far different way than I expected it to go.**


	7. Chapter 7

Afterwards, when Max snuck away from a squealing Nudge and Fang not so subtly followed her much to everyone's great amusement, Angel mentioned that there was a fireworks display on later in the night. They'd be able to see it from the back garden, she told them enthusiastically. For some reason he had a feeling Angel was talking directly to him and Ella when she told everyone.

And so, with darkness quite firmly enveloping them, Iggy somehow found himself sat down outside, with only a thin blanket separating him from the dewy grass. Beside him, Ella was sat shoulder to shoulder with him. Somewhere to his left, Angel, Gazzy and Nudge. Iggy had a feeling he knew where Max and Fang were.

He couldn't really blame them.

It wasn't like he'd be able to see the fireworks anyway. Hear them sure, maybe smell that tinge of sulphur in the air when it had finished but that was it.

Truthfully, the only reason he was here was because of the warm, comfortable hand that was holding his under the blanket he'd had the good sense to drag out. Still, the cooler night air was making him shiver now and then.

It definitely wasn't the low voice which Ella was using when she spoke to him or the way in which her thumb was rubbing over the back of his hand slowly, soothingly.

"You don't mind staying out here, do you Iggy?" Damn it, maybe he had shivered a bit too obviously. "I know it's getting colder out."

He gave her hand a quick squeeze under the blankets. "Nah. Course not. Besides, I don't think I could much stand Max and Fang making kissy face at each other anywhere near my bed."

"You're blind." She responded with good humour.

"Yeah, well, I don't want to hear it either." Ella shuddered good-naturedly against him and Iggy couldn't stop himself from grinning a bit. "I rest my case."

"Now, that's just grim."

Do friends just hold each others hands while sitting outside? Iggy wasn't quite sure where to go from there. He liked holding Ella's hand but grabbing the other one seemed a bit out of the question.

Hmmm.

He heard a small puff of breath come from Ella, the smallest of chills running through her.

Aha.

Iggy tried to not think too hard about what the others might think of what he was about to do as he let go of Ella's hand for a second, shaking his jacket off. He tried really hard to not think about the small possibility he was completely misreading the situation. Jeez, that would be mortifyingly awkward and would be just his luck. Goosebumps snuck up his bare arms as Iggy moved the jacket beside him.

"What are you doing?" Ella's voice seemed confused almost, and he could almost see her head tilting ever so slightly. She seemed like someone who would tilt her head.

 _No idea_ , he felt like murmuring back to her. _But I really like the way your hands fit mine, and the way that your laugh leaves me a little tingly, and I loved the way you found me and dragged me out here to sit with you-_

Christ, Fang was right. He _was_ a romantic.

"Just...relax." He murmured instead, wings slowly unfurling to curl around the pair of them, feathers acting as a shield from the cool night air. Iggy could've whooped a little bit as Ella leaned against him, almost carefully placing her head on his shoulder. His right arm naturally fell around her waist and he felt that warm hand grabbing his left hand with a slow squeeze, resting in his lap.

 _Ninja cool Iggy, ninja cool. Romeo, eat thou heart out._

A comfortable silence fell and it almost startled Iggy to find that he was content. Just sitting and listening to the night sounds, Ella's steady breathing brushing against his neck now and then. Man, stick your mansions and money where the sun doesn't shine. This was where life got good, the small, quiet moments that he wanted to last forever.

Jeez. It was almost scary how sappy he could get.

"This is nice." Ella murmured in an undertone meant for only for him. "Never thought your wings would be so comfy."

"You're not gonna skin me and make me into a pillow are you?" It was rare that Iggy heard Ella laugh in such a breathy way. She was silent for a moment, and then-

"I could just grab you and do this again if I wanted to instead."

"I-uh, I really wouldn't be complaining." Really? He was stuttering? So much for ninja cool.

After a few moments, Iggy felt lips press against his cheek ever so softly, lingering for a little before pulling away and that lovely weight was back on his shoulder. _Yup. Bye bye, ninja cool. It was fun while it lasted._

"You're sweet Iggy." Hell, if abandoning any pretence of James Bond levels of smooth made Ella sound so quietly happy, Iggy was pretty happy to roll with the punches.

Heh. Fang had a point after all.

There was a pleasant tickling sensation from where Ella's lips had met his cheek and Iggy'd be damned if he didn't want that giddy feeling in his stomach to go away. He wouldn't mind much if she did that again.

"Do I get a kiss every time I say something sweet?" Oh boy. Now you're done for Iggy boy. This is only gonna end one way.

Ella's head turned into him for a moment and he could feel her lips curled up in a smile against his shoulder. Iggy's wings involuntarily wrapped around Ella a little tighter.

"Maybe."

"So, if I-if I said that, uh, I think you've got one of the nicest laughs I've heard?" Well he hadn't stuttered too badly that time at least.

Lips pressed against his cheek again, lingering a bit longer than it had the last time. Score for Iggy. He couldn't stop the lazy smile from slipping onto his face.

"I'd say you're disgustingly sappy," her voice breathed into his ear, pleasant chills racing down his spine. "And that your wings are wonderfully amazing, just like your smile."

Well, Iggy hadn't quite been expecting that. He didn't know what he was expecting but it wasn't that.

"And I'd also say it's awfully endearing how flustered you get when someone compliments you." There were definitely worse ways to spend the night than this. Jeez.

 _If Max can get the nuts to kiss Fang, you can kiss Ella. Come on Casanova, you can do this._

Iggy turned his head and his hand let go of Ella's, drifting up her arm and grazing her shoulder lightly as he rested his hand against her cheek. One thumb came out and Iggy could just about feel the corner of Ella's lips, smiling.

 _So far, so good._

"Ella?"

"Hmm?"

"I think I'm going to kiss you now."

When he didn't hear any complaints, Iggy leaned in just right of where his hand was, lips meeting Ella's softly.

He didn't really care much that he missed the fireworks after that. He vaguely registered the loud whizzes and bangs but was a bit more focused on the slow way Ella kissed him back, her hand coming up to rest at the back of his neck. There was that small niggle that maybe he should probably breathe but god, suddenly he got why Fang just wanted to kiss Max all the time. This was better than breathing, lips gently moving against each other with no hurry. It was sweet and addicting and soft, just like Ella and that giddy feeling in his stomach turned into a soaring elation, a lovely haze spreading through his body and-

And they broke apart with a small gasp, breathing heavier than usual, grinning with abandon. Iggy could feel Ella's smile as she brushed his lips with hers, the hand at his neck moving to tangle in his hair.

"We missed the fireworks." Iggy murmured, his own lips ghosting over Ella's as they spoke.

"I think I prefer kissing you." She murmured back and was it normal for his heart to be beating so fast? His face felt weirdly warm in the cool night air.

"Fireworks are overrated anyway." He responded. Screw his heart, was it normal to feel this happy? Iggy really, really hoped so. "You're a great kisser by the way." Ella hummed against his lips at that and for the rest of his life, Iggy would deny that he groaned a little at that. No sir. Not him.

"Then you won't mind if I kiss you again?" Almost tentatively, her nose brushed his as she asked the question.

"I won't mind if you kiss me until hell freezes over."

"Sap."

And then Ella's lips were on his once more and _wow,_ screw breathing, this was better than flying. He remembered to breathe through his nose for all of five seconds and then teeth were cautiously biting at his bottom lip, Ella's lips cheekily turning up.

Yeah. Ninja cool kinda went out the window at that.

* * *

Angel nudged Nudge (heh) with her shoulder, smiling as Iggy pulled away from Ella dazedly, the pair of them grinning unabashedly as Ella flushed crimson at something Iggy said.

"About damn time." She heard Gazzy mumble from her other side.

"Good day for romance all around then huh?"

"About damn time." Nudge echoed Gazzy with a smile, lying back on the blanket to look up the sky. "I think we've earned some normalcy in our lives by now."

* * *

 **A/N-Wingythings I really wish you had an account so I could PM you. I do see your reviews, I just can't respond to them. Your kind words are appreciated, a lot. I'l definitely be putting more Max Ride up soon**

 **Consider this fic completed now. While Iggy and Ella haven't exactly been the main focus of this, I wanted to wrap everything up nice and neatly before I moved onto a bigger project. Although I'm not saying I'll never come back to this, I am saying I'm quite happy to leave this as is; short, somewhat decent and despicably fluffy.**

 **Thank you all very much for reviewing, following or even just reading. Always good to know that some people enjoyed this at least.**

 **Had to edit because mobile and italics do not go well together apparently. *sigh***


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